Subscribe to the News Feed Newsback to News

Friday, 08 January 2010

Young man named in Robinson affair

The young man involved in an affair with the First Minister's wife has been named as Kirk McCambley in a television documentary which claimed both Iris and Peter Robinson broke parliamentary rules over a £50,000 loan.

We’re sorry. This video is unavailable from your location.

DUP support Robinsons
‘Deep emotion’ – Dodds
Constituents react
Political Analysis
Full Interview: Peter Robinson
Statement: Peter Robinson

The documentary alleged Mrs Robinson organised two loans to help her lover set up a business in Belfast.

Mrs Robinson secured the money from two family friend developers so Kirk McCambley, 19, could open a restaurant on the banks of the River Lagan.

Read Ken Reid's blogs: The Day After and Family Affairs.

But the Strangford MP faces claims that she did not declare an interest in the business despite sitting on the local council that awarded the tender to Mr McCambley.

The BBC documentary further alleged that her husband became aware of the situation but did not take steps to alert the appropriate authorities.

Mrs Robinson and Mr McCambley's affair lasted for around five months starting in the summer of 2008.

It ended after they rowed over the repayment of the money. Four months later, in March last year, the MP attempted to take her own life.

The pair had first become close after she comforted him following the death of his father and her friend, Billy.

"She looked out for me to make sure I was OK," her former lover, now 21, told the Spotlight programme.

Whistleblower

Selwyn Black, a former adviser to the MP who resigned after feeling uneasy about the loans issue, told the documentary she encouraged Mr McCambley to bid for the tender to run a cafe at the historic Lock Keeper's Cottage, a site the council Mrs Robinson sat on was redeveloping.

The programme claimed Mrs Robinson failed to register her financial interest in the scheme to her fellow councillors and did not record the two loans on her parliamentary declaration of interests.

Mr Black, who turned whistleblower to the investigation, said Mr Robinson became aware of the situation and in December 2008 urged his wife to ensure both loans were repaid to developers Ken Campbell and Fred Fraser, who had since died.

"They both knew the consequences of what they had been involved in and did nothing to address that circumstance," said Mr Black.

"It goes right to the heart of credibility of government in Northern Ireland."

Mrs Robinson stepped down from politics last month, citing a long battle with depression.

She issued a sensational statement on Wednesday revealing her affair and her subsequent suicide attempt.

The programme was told she was too unwell to answer the allegations.

On Wednesday, Mr Robinson told the media he was aware of the claims and was confident he had done nothing wrong.

"During the course of yesterday (Tuesday) I received a letter from one of the organisations within the BBC.

"It contained no allegation against me, it asked questions which are easily answered but there is no allegation that will stand."

On Thursday night, a DUP spokesman said: "Following allegations made about Peter Robinson in the BBC's Spotlight programme on Thursday 7th January 2010, Mr Robinson will be consulting his legal team on Friday."

'Confidence'

Peter Robinson with Nigel Dodds.

Earlier, the DUP had rallied behind the First Minister, after Peter Robinson met Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness for devolution talks at Stormont.

The east Belfast MP briefed DUP ministers and deputy leader Nigel Dodds following the afternoon's meeting with Mr McGuinness.

"The party I believe has full confidence in Peter's leadership and want to see him continue to do the excellent role that he has done already as First Minister," Nigel Dodds told UTV.

"There is a great deal of sympathy and concern at a personal level and Peter should be given and the family, space to deal with that personal, private family matters but clearly he is back to work in his public office," he added.

Mr Robinson also went to his Belfast constituency office, his wife Iris' base in nearby Newtownards and DUP headquarters in Belfast, where he told staff it was "business as usual".

Iris Robinson started her "brief" affair weeks after quoting the Bible and describing homosexuality as an abomination.

"A lot of the gay people in Northern Ireland will feel kind of vindicated by what we have seen develop over the last day or two", Andy Thompson from the gay rights group Outrage told UTV.

"This is a woman who really brought morals into politics whenever she decided to wave her finger at other people at what their private practices were and it's just very interesting to see the hypocrisy in all of that now that she has been shown to have an inappropriate relationship of her own," he said.

Send to a friend

Email To
Your Name
Comment

Comments

65 Comments

At 09:33 on 15 January 2010, Kristina wrote:

I agree with Steve. I know some one who's bipolar who reminds me very much of Mrs Robinson. Taking a lover 3 times younger is just the tip of the iceberg. When I heard about the story I thought "manic episode..." and she admits to be suffering from severe depression. Read about manic depression or bipolar disorder and it's a good explanation of Mrs. Robinson has been displaying over the last couple of years.

At 20:05 on 09 January 2010, Joanne wrote:

To Pamela, and anyone else who says that people should remember the Robinsons' three kids - please remember Iris Robinson's kids are considerably older than the kid she chose to have her affair with. He is the real victim in all of this. She took advantage of a 19 year old kid following the death of his father!

At 11:29 on 09 January 2010, maggie wrote:

Jim you are correct. JF had many affairs but Iris had but one which lasted a few months.Remember when she talked about the Gay community it was after she tried to take her own life because of her sin. I have never heard JFK doing anything of the sort. Was there not a few tricky dealing none by him?

At 22:53 on 08 January 2010, Jim wrote:

Maggie are you serious equating this non-entity with J.F.Kennedy, Clinton. You must be joking. No one outside your provence knows who this hypocrite is.

At 16:25 on 08 January 2010, Mike wrote:

Where is all the church condemnation. If Iris had had a lesbian affair they'd have been shouting from their spires today. What hypocrisy in the whole church regime.

At 15:42 on 08 January 2010, Young Gay Man wrote:

I am a young gay man, I have suffered from mental health problems for a number of years, most of which relate back to my struggle with being gay, understanding what and who I was, and knowing how hated and disgusting I would be viewed by wider society. I personally have attempted suicide on a number of occassions, quite serious attempts. When Iris spoke out about homosexuality in the context she did a while back, she made me physically and mentally ill, I was at that stage ready to 'come out' to family and friends, but her comments and how the British Government allowed her to express these hate filled comments without check, and how the PSNI viewed her as having committed a hate crime but not bringing her to account made me think that I would suffer even more. This woman has damaged the well-being of many gay people, bringing to them much more hostility and violence than before her comments. I am now sickened deeply that Iris Robinson is using mental illness as an excuse for her deplorable behaviour as both adultress and fraudster! This woman will never know mental illness like many of the people whom she has inflicted mental pain and suffering on in the past number of years. Iris was well enough to make a written statement to the BBC a few days ago about her affair, but suddenly is announced as being too ill to comment on the very serious founded allegations made by the Spotlight investigation. Peter Robinsons near oscar nominating act on tea-time news days ago now proves that his quivering voice was not a heart-broken man whos wife has played away from home but a man who is due to be exposed as partaking in the fraudulent activities of his wife. I would like to conclude that whilst Iris obviously still views myself and my fellow gay brothers and sisters as an abominatoon, I have never, ever and would never, ever contemplate having an affair with a married, co-habitating man, I may be gay, but I have more morals than Iris Robinson.

At 14:11 on 08 January 2010, Yvonne wrote:

This entire saga, or what is known of it thus far, is an embarrasment to the electorate of Northern Ireland. They are entitled to expect higher standars of behaviour and accountability from their elected representatives and leaders. One can but hope that upon mature reflection, all elected representatives will have learned some lessons from this, and that any and all decision made individually and collectively by them in the future will be based on the common good and service to the public that elects them.